Vistry, the UK’s leading specialist mixed-tenure housebuilder, has secured planning consent from Oldham Council for 147 new affordable homes on the site of the former Oldham Mumps Railway Station. The Southlink development will transform 3.92 hectares of brownfield land into a new community delivered in partnership with First Choice Homes Oldham. Currently owned by Oldham Council and Transport for Greater Manchester, the site will be acquired by Vistry. It was cleared after the former Oldham Mumps Railway Station was decommissioned in 2009. All 147 homes will be affordable, comprising 125 homes for social rent, 11 for buy to rent and 11 for shared ownership. The scheme will provide 97 apartments and 50 family houses, with a mix of one, two, three and four-bedroom homes, including apartments, mews and terraced properties, semi-detached homes and detached houses. Three apartment buildings of three to four storeys will front Oldham Way. The homes will use a red multi-brick palette with grey roof tiles, reflecting Oldham’s character and complementing the nearby Princes Gate development. The consent is subject to planning conditions and legal obligations securing the full affordable housing scheme, biodiversity mitigation and enhancement measures, a 30-year Habitat Management and Monitoring Plan, and £743,607 towards education provision, public open space enhancement and off-site tree planting. The landscape strategy will retain existing trees where appropriate and add approximately 152 new trees, native hedgerows, mixed scrub, species-rich grassland and wildflower meadows. An avenue of lime trees will also be planted along Oldham Way. The site is within walking distance of Oldham town centre and close to Oldham Mumps Metrolink Interchange. New shared walking and cycling routes will connect Glodwick with the interchange, Southlink Business Park and the town centre, while the internal road layout has been designed to prevent through traffic into the Southlink Business Park. Public open space will include informal recreation areas, natural play features, seating and new green links. Matthew Parkes, Managing Director at Vistry Manchester & Cheshire East, said: “This consent is an important step towards bringing a prominent brownfield site back into productive use and delivering 147 high-quality affordable homes for Oldham. Working with First Choice Homes Oldham, we will provide a broad mix of homes and tenures to meet local needs, in a highly accessible location close to the town centre and Metrolink.” Mark Gifford, chief executive at First Choice Homes Oldham said: “The planning greenlight for Southlink is brilliant news. The building of 147 much-needed homes right in the heart of Oldham on a derelict brownfield site has taken a huge step forward. “This new community and its open spaces is an important regeneration project too. It will make a big difference to the town centre. I know the ambition is for it to act as a catalyst for more future developments. “FCHO is committed to building the homes people need, in the locations they want to live. Our partnership at Southlink with Vistry Group is going to deliver on those pledges and we are excited to be part of it. “We have also listened to what type of homes are needed and increased the number of family properties in the development to address that pressing issue here in Oldham. “Next steps over the next few weeks will happen at pace as we look to transfer land ownership and sign remaining contracts. The ambition is to have spades in the ground in November.” Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

Taunton-based Summerfield Homes has completed construction on all 320 new homes on its flagship development at Killams Park in Somerset where it has invested an additional £3.6m in the local community. The end of construction comes after a decade of work across three phases, creating a vibrant community in a range of accommodation as well as extensive green space, meadows, orchards and wildlife corridors. Latest additions to the development include more children’s play equipment and the Killams Park Art and Nature Trail. Each piece of the Art Trail was meticulously designed to represent the wetland, woodland, farmland, and wildlife of the historical location and is approximately a 2.5K walk around Killams Park. As part of the development, Summerfield has delivered 86 affordable and discounted homes. Sixty of these were made available through housing association partners for shared ownership and social or affordable rent. A further 26 were sold through Summerfield’s own MyHome scheme at 30% below market value, helping eligible local buyers achieve home ownership without paying rent on the discounted share. Summerfield worked closely with Somerset Council to fulfil the S106 planning commitments attached to consent for the development. The £3.66m investment included £2.25m towards education, £414,112 for footpaths and cycle routes, £501,550 for community halls and facilities, £459,732 for green spaces and parks and £36,914 for public art and the nature trail. The wider 22-hectare development includes around eight hectares of open space, with more than 1,000 new trees, wildflower meadows and grass areas, an orchard, children’s play areas and an enhanced wildlife corridor along the Blackbrook stream. New and improved walking and cycling routes connect residents with Taunton and the surrounding countryside. All the homes are built with energy savings and a greener future in mind. Key features include double-glazing, insulation on doors, low-energy lighting, counterflow heat exchangers, EV charging points, gardens and bee and bat boxes. James Holyday, Group Managing Director of Summerfield, said: “Completing construction at Killams Park is a significant milestone for Summerfield and for everyone who has helped bring this major development to life over the past decade. “Working alongside Somerset Council, Abri Homes, Sovereign, Magna Housing and other partners, we have created a varied and welcoming neighbourhood; investing in affordable housing, education, community facilities, green space and sustainable travel that will benefit the area for generations. “We are extremely proud of what has been achieved and grateful to our residents, partners, consultants, contractors and the local community for their support throughout the development”. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

New brand, Everway Homes, sits within the Salboy Group Salboy, the nationwide property development and funding group, has entered the build-to-rent (BTR) market for the first time with the launch of its dedicated BTR brand, Everway Homes.  Over the next five years, Everway Homes will develop and rent 2,000 brand-new, low-rise homes, targeting young professionals and families in high-demand areas across England and Wales. 1,000 homes are already in the pipeline for development. Salboy aims to hand over the keys to its first Everway tenants by January 2027, with 2,000 homes completed by the end of 2031. The new homes will be built by Salboy’s network of experienced regional delivery partners, as well as by its own low-rise building arm, Salboy Construction. Management lettings and maintenance will be managed by the Salboy team.  Everway is spearheaded by Andrew Cavanagh, CFO at Salboy since 2019: “The fall in construction starts in the BTR sector this year has been staggering to watch, and highlights the grim realities facing regional developers and contractors striving to keep their BTR schemes viable. From the cost of labour and supplies to regulatory uncertainty and planning delays, the outlook for BTR developers has been increasingly poor. And, yet, the urgent, pressing need for high-quality rental property remains unchanged.  While the dynamics and statistics will encourage others to steer clear of the market, this is the right time for Salboy to enter BTR. For years we have honed our strategy to bring economies of scale to development projects across the UK by working in partnership with a wider network of regional development and delivery partners. And we are confident in our ability to bring the same positive, collaborative approach to BTR now.  With Everway, we’re looking forward to working closely with regional contractors who are motivated to get more homes built in their local areas. These regional contractors will benefit from the reduced costs of labour, materials and energy that come with delivering projects as part of a wider group, and their communities stand to benefit as a result.” Everway is a natural next step in Salboy’s strategy to diversify its involvement in and contribution to the UK homebuilding industry. The launch of Everway follows the launch of Salboy Construction in February 2026 to deliver small-scale housing schemes throughout the UK, as well as the launch of Hidden, Salboy’s boutique aparthotel brand, in April 2026. The Salboy Group now counts more than seven active property and construction brands under its wider umbrella.  Daisyfields in Staffordshire – the first Everway Homes project Construction began this summer at Daisyfields, Everway Homes’s first scheme, a 37-home development in Staffordshire. Positioned as a convenient commuter development, Daisyfields is a 25-minute drive from Stoke-on-Trent and Stafford, and 45-minutes to Derby. In addition to its proximity to major cities and cross-country rail links, tenants of Daisyfields will benefit from professionally managed, energy efficient, pet-friendly homes as well as attractive, spacious landscaping.  Additional Everway Homes schemes in the pipeline include sites in Kent, Greater Manchester, Lincolnshire and Cornwall. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

YTL Developments has unveiled two major investments in Build-to-Rent (BTR) homes as it continues to accelerate the speed of delivery at Brabazon: the new town for the West of England being built on the historic former Filton Airfield. Construction is now underway on the first major Build to Rent project at Brabazon. Three residential buildings will deliver 239 new homes, including 189 Build to Rent apartments, seven Build to Rent houses and 43 affordable properties for shared ownership. In addition, a design team has now been appointed to develop plans for a second Build to Rent project at Brabazon. HTA Design has been appointed as architects with a brief to deliver a further 900 properties for rent in the urban heart of Brabazon, close to where the 20,000-capacity Aviva Arena is under construction. Both BTR projects are located less than 250 metres from the new Bristol Brabazon rail station, which is expected to open before the end of 2026. YTL Developments is also currently delivering a range of 2, 3 and 4 bedroom houses for open-market sale, while the first phase of its 1,514-bed purpose-built student accommodation project – known as The Propeller Quarter – has opened for the current academic year. 239 new homes to be built in first project Designed to meet demand for high-quality rental accommodation in Bristol and South Gloucestershire, the homes for rent in the first project, to be built by YTL Construction UK, will offer a mix of studio, one and two-bedroom apartments and houses. Residents will also benefit from landscaped communal podium gardens, creating a private outdoor space at the heart of the neighbourhood. The start of construction marks the next stage of YTL Development’s commitment to rental living.  As an important part of the wider masterplan for Brabazon, the broad range of homes of differing sizes and tenures is designed to appeal to residents at different stages of life – allowing people to rent, own or move within the community as their circumstances change, whilst also building a multi-generational, vibrant place to live and work.  900 High-Amenity BTR apartments in design The second BTR project at Brabazon has now commenced design development. Featuring up to 900 additional Build to Rent apartments, delivered across a series of future phases, the project will establish Brabazon as both one of the largest but also the most diverse and ambitious mixed-tenure neighbourhoods in the UK. These premium rental properties will include a mix of studio, one, two and three bed luxury apartments.  Residents will be able to access an estimated 21,000 sq ft of shared amenity space with a comprehensive range of facilities centred around lifestyle and wellness, including access to landscaped roof terraces – all designed to create a best-in-class rental experience unlike anything currently available in Bristol and South Gloucestershire. This second stage of rental living will also include retail and commercial space spread across 26,000 sq ft of active frontages at the start of one of the primary pedestrian high streets at the centre of Brabazon.   Seb Loyn, Planning Director at YTL Developments, said: “Starting construction on our first Build to Rent homes represents another important milestone in the delivery of Brabazon. “We have always believed that creating a successful new town means providing homes of all types and sizes to buy and rent at Brabazon to cater to people at every stage of their life. Build to Rent is a key part of that vision, delivering professionally managed homes that offer flexibility, quality and a strong multi-generational community. “This first stage is just the beginning. Over the coming years we will create a substantial rental neighbourhood that forms an integral part of the wider masterplan for Brabazon and reinforces our long-term commitment to Bristol.” Jon McDiarmid, Director at YTL Developments, said: “Build to Rent continues to attract significant interest from both residents and institutional investors because of the quality of homes, customer experience and long-term operational model it provides.  “Brabazon offers a unique opportunity to deliver rental housing at scale within one of the UK’s most exciting regeneration projects. As the new Bristol Brabazon train station, Brabazon Park and Aviva Arena come forward, residents will benefit from an exceptional place to live and work that has been designed from the outset for long-term sustainable growth.” The first Build to Rent apartments are expected to complete by the end of 2028. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

Construction is set to begin on a long-awaited Liverpool residential development after Bentry Capital secured Gateway 2 approval for the first phase of its £87 million Abbey Row scheme. The approval clears the way for Bentry Capital’s in-house contractor, Mellior Construction, to begin principal construction works on the 241-home first phase next month. The site has already been cleared and initial subcontract packages have been secured, enabling the project team to move directly into the main construction programme following the regulatory milestone. Formerly known as Islington Quarter, the development was originally brought forward for planning in 2018 but subsequently stalled. Bentry Capital has since reassessed the proposals and progressed the project through the current building safety regulatory framework. The wider Abbey Row development will ultimately deliver 365 apartments across three architecturally distinctive buildings, transforming a prominent site at the gateway to Liverpool’s Knowledge Quarter. Phase one will provide 241 new homes, with Block C scheduled to reach completion in 2028 and Block A following in 2029. Securing Gateway 2 represents a particularly important milestone for the project. Under the strengthened building safety regime, higher-risk residential developments must receive approval from the Building Safety Regulator before relevant building work can commence, placing greater emphasis on demonstrating compliance before construction begins. Steven Hughes, Operations Lead at Mellior Construction, said: “Securing Gateway 2 approval represents the culmination of a detailed and collaborative design process and allows us to move into the principal construction phase with the building-safety requirements embedded throughout our delivery strategy.” The development is also entering construction with significant sales momentum, with more than 70% of homes within the first phase already pre-sold. David Ronson, National Sales and Marketing Director at Bentry Capital, said the developer had acquired the site with a clear belief in both its potential and Liverpool’s long-term strength. He added that the team had focused on reassessing the scheme, navigating the current regulatory environment and creating a development that is both deliverable and relevant to the city today. With Mellior Construction now preparing to mobilise for the principal works, Abbey Row will bring a previously stalled development back into active construction while delivering a substantial addition to Liverpool’s residential pipeline. The £87 million investment will also contribute to the continued regeneration around the Knowledge Quarter, an important part of Liverpool’s wider growth strategy encompassing residential development, education, science, innovation and employment. After several years in the planning and development process, Gateway 2 approval marks a decisive step forward for Abbey Row, with work now set to turn the long-standing proposals into 365 new city homes. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

Grainger is progressing plans for a £60 million Build to Rent development in the heart of Chester, which could bring around 300 professionally managed rental homes to a long-vacant city centre site. The listed residential landlord and developer is working with landowner Chester Race Company and UK Land & Property to regenerate the former Linenhall stables site, located between Chester Racecourse and the city centre. Plans are being developed for a six-storey residential scheme comprising approximately 300 BTR apartments, with a planning application expected to be submitted to Cheshire West and Chester Council in November. Subject to securing consent, construction could begin during 2027. The development would replace an existing consent for student accommodation and instead create a purpose-built rental community aimed at a broad range of residents, including young professionals, couples and people looking to downsize. Architect Falconer Chester Hall is part of the professional team developing the proposals, alongside Tier Consult, Ridge, Curtins, Fenix Heritage, Asteer Planning and Clayton Property. The Linenhall site has a long history of proposed redevelopment. Formerly occupied by stable buildings serving the nearby racecourse, the land has been cleared since 2009 and is currently operating as a surface car park. The approximately 1.8-acre site sits within Chester’s historic City Walls and a conservation area, giving the design team the challenge of introducing a substantial new residential development within one of the country’s most distinctive historic city environments. Earlier proposals for the land have included private apartments and purpose-built student accommodation, but despite previous planning permissions, a major redevelopment has yet to come forward. The latest £60 million BTR proposals could finally unlock the site while supporting the continued growth of Chester’s city centre residential population. Louise Stewart, chief executive of Chester Race Company, said the partners believe residential development represents a strong long-term use for Linenhall, with the ambition to create a high-quality scheme that contributes to the growth and vitality of the city centre. The location is particularly suited to the Build to Rent model, providing residents with access to the city centre’s employment, retail, leisure and hospitality offer while also being positioned close to Chester Racecourse and public transport connections. For Grainger, the project would add another significant development to its expanding UK BTR portfolio, while bringing its long-term rental management model into Chester. The proposals also reflect the wider role Build to Rent can play in city centre regeneration, particularly where underused brownfield or surface car park sites can be transformed into professionally managed residential communities. If approved, the Linenhall development would replace a long-standing gap in Chester’s urban fabric with around 300 new homes, representing a major investment in both the city’s residential market and its wider built environment. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

Arada, the leading international master developer, has submitted a series of planning applications to the London Borough of Newham to advance the delivery of Thameside West, one of London’s largest and most ambitious regeneration projects, with proposals that would unlock the delivery of affordable housing and connect the area between the Thames and Royal Docks for the first time. Spanning over 47 acres in London’s Royal Docks, Thameside West has a Gross Development Value of £2.5 billion, with the potential to deliver at least 5,000 homes as part of a vibrant new district of East London. Building on the existing hybrid planning permission, the plans set out Arada’s landscape-led approach to the first stage of the project. This stage comprises nearly 1,500 new homes across six buildings, the first two of which will now be 100% social rent and will include three and four bedroom family homes. The plans are also designed to improve the permeability between buildings, which are organised around a network of streets, gardens, parks and shared spaces. New ground floor units facing onto the park will provide space for amenities, such as cafes and restaurants. A coherent architectural character has been applied, which responds to the individual positioning of each building along the dock-facing edge, park and Bell Lane, which now forms part of the site. At the heart of the proposals will be a new seven-acre park, alongside around 1,000 new trees, creating a greener, more biodiverse environment for residents and the wider community. The park will serve both recreational and everyday needs, framed by smaller gardens and planted edges to enhance biodiversity, as well as dedicated play spaces including adventure-filled woodland areas, play trails and play-on-the-way spaces. This is further complemented by a kilometre of active waterfront and a riverside walk along Bell Lane, which marks the south-east border of the site. A community design group of 20 local residents is working with Arada to help shape a section of park around local needs. A series of workshops is now underway, giving residents the opportunity to share local knowledge, explore ideas and inform the design of a welcoming and inclusive public space. Accessible public realm and landscaping sit at the heart of Arada’s vision for Thameside West, creating a new destination for recreation, leisure and community use and forging a new connection between the Thames and the Royal Docks. The rich industrial heritage of Silvertown will be woven into the design through the use of ropework-inspired detailing and paths. This underscores Arada’s commitment to unlocking and delivering high quality, genuinely affordable new homes that meet local need with a focus on nature and wellbeing. Ahmed Alkhoshaibi, Group CEO of Arada, said:   “Thameside West is a landscape-led masterplan, composed by nature, open to all and made for London. “This is London’s next social gateway: a new riverfront neighbourhood inspired by the future, where local life meets global ambition once again and where homes, wellness, water, culture and community are connected by design. “This is one of London’s most significant remaining riverfront regeneration opportunities – more than 5,000 homes, over one kilometre of river frontage and over six hectares of publicly accessible amenity. We have the ambition to create more than a new residential district. Thameside West is planned as a neighbourhood within the city, not an enclave at its edge: a new piece of East London where the quality of everyday London life comes first.” Tom Copley, Deputy Mayor for Housing and Residential Development, said: “Tackling London’s housing crisis is the Mayor’s top priority and Thameside West will help deliver the new homes Londoners deserve, including much needed social rent and family housing. “By combining affordability, high-quality design and generous green spaces, Thameside West will transform a key brownfield site in the Royal Docks into a thriving new neighbourhood and help build a better, fairer London for everyone.” Situated across the river from Greenwich Peninsula and Canary Wharf, with Royal Victoria Dock, City Hall, Excel and Silvertown to the north and east, Thameside West sits at the meeting point of the Thames, the Royal Docks and some of London’s most significant transport, cultural and regeneration infrastructure. Arada is progressing design development with Transport for London (TfL) on a new DLR station, a major piece of public infrastructure, which it is intended to open in time for the arrival of the site’s first residents. The DLR is one of the UK’s busiest light rail routes with 97.8 million passenger journeys recorded during the year ended March 2025.[1] The wider area is well served by public transport, and a new station will offer enhanced accessibility for future Thameside West residents and nearby neighbours and businesses. Thameside West is being brought forward in partnership with the Greater London Authority’s (GLA) Royal Docks Team, reflecting a shared commitment to delivering new homes, public infrastructure and long-term economic growth across the Royal Docks. Global architecture firm Gensler, global built environment consultancy Arup, and landscape architects Planit are advising on the scheme. [1] Department for Transport, Light rail and tram statistics, England: year ending March 2025 Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

HG Construction has been appointed to deliver a major residential development on the site of the former Harrison Gibson department store in Ilford, bringing forward 326 new homes on a prominent east London site that has remained vacant for almost a decade. The contractor will deliver the new homes in residential towers on Ilford High Road for MP Living, the social housing provider established by real estate investment manager Meadow Partners. Main construction work can now move forward after MP Living secured the first tranche of grant funding from the Greater London Authority (GLA), marking an important step towards regenerating the long-vacant town centre site. MP Living is working in partnership with the GLA and the London Borough of Redbridge to deliver the development and will retain ownership and management of the completed homes, providing a long-term approach to the operation of the new residential community. The project represents a significant intervention in Ilford town centre, transforming a former retail site into much-needed housing while bringing a prominent stretch of the High Road back into productive use. The Harrison Gibson department store was once an important part of Ilford’s retail landscape, but the site has stood vacant for nearly ten years. Previous redevelopment proposals failed to progress, before MP Living brought forward a new residential-led vision for the site. Redbridge Council’s Planning Committee unanimously approved the proposals in May 2025, clearing the way for the development team to progress funding and construction preparations. The scheme also demonstrates the growing role of partnerships between private investors, local authorities and the GLA in unlocking difficult urban sites for housing delivery. J. Andrew McDaniel, director of MP Living and co-founder and partner at Meadow Partners, said London continued to experience substantial demand for affordable housing while facing major challenges in bringing forward sufficient new supply. He said the development demonstrated what could be achieved through constructive strategic partnerships between the public and private sectors, with MP Living taking a long-term investment position within the affordable housing market. For HG Construction, the appointment adds another significant London residential project to its pipeline and follows its continued expansion across high-rise housing, affordable homes and purpose-built student accommodation. With grant funding now beginning to flow and a main contractor appointed, the development is positioned to move into its construction phase, bringing a site that has remained dormant for years back to life. Once completed, the 326-home scheme will not only deliver new housing but also contribute to the continuing regeneration and residential transformation of Ilford town centre. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

Scotland is looking to attract greater levels of private investment into housing development, with Build to Rent identified as an important part of plans to accelerate the delivery of new homes across the country. The Scottish Government’s Programme for Government 2026–31 sets out plans for a new national housing agency, More Homes Scotland (MHS), which will bring together funding, expertise and delivery tools in an effort to remove barriers and get more housing projects moving. The agency is expected to be phased in from 1 April 2027. Central to the approach will be a strategic partnership between More Homes Scotland and the Scottish National Investment Bank (SNIB), designed to leverage additional private commercial capital for residential development. The partnership will look across different housing tenures, with Build to Rent specifically identified alongside affordable and social housing as an area capable of supporting increased delivery. The Government also wants the initiative to encourage new entrants into the market and support the growth of existing housing providers. For Scotland’s BTR sector, the announcement provides a potentially important new route for attracting institutional and private capital into projects at a time when the industry continues to face challenges around development viability, funding and the delivery of new housing at scale. More Homes Scotland will have a wider role in coordinating housing delivery and investment, strengthening regional collaboration and helping to align new development with economic growth priorities. The Government is also proposing further changes to the planning system aimed at speeding up development and helping projects progress from planning through to construction. The measures form part of a broader strategy to increase housing supply and improve investor confidence across Scotland. Alongside the increased focus on private capital, affordable housing remains a major part of Scotland’s housing programme. The Government has committed to delivering 111,000 affordable homes by 2032, with at least 70% intended for social rent. The establishment of MHS could therefore create a stronger link between public-sector housing priorities and institutional investment, opening opportunities for developers, investors, contractors and the wider construction supply chain. For Build to Rent in particular, the commitment is significant because it places the sector directly within the Government’s plans for increasing housing delivery rather than treating it solely as a specialist investment market. As More Homes Scotland begins to take shape ahead of its planned introduction from April 2027, attention will now turn to how its partnership with SNIB will translate private capital into viable development opportunities and, ultimately, new homes on the ground. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals

Starlight Investments has completed the closing of its second UK Build to Rent fund, securing £680 million in total capital commitments to support the acquisition and delivery of more than 6,000 rental homes across the country. The capital has been raised through Starlight UK BTR Fund II alongside ancillary investment vehicles, providing significant backing for the global real estate investor’s continued expansion within the UK purpose-built rental market. The fund is already partially deployed, with three major residential communities currently under construction. Two are located in Manchester, while a further development is progressing in Basildon, Essex. Among Starlight’s growing pipeline is Trinity Heights in Manchester, a 60-storey BTR tower approaching completion, alongside The Mercantile in Basildon and another major rental community under construction within Manchester’s Greengate neighbourhood. The latest fundraising represents another substantial injection of institutional capital into the UK’s rapidly expanding BTR development sector. Investors participating in Fund II include institutions from Europe, Asia-Pacific and Canada, combining existing Starlight investment partners with several new entrants. Significantly, the fund has also attracted government-backed investment. Earlier this year, the National Housing Bank, part of Homes England, committed £100 million as a cornerstone investor in Fund II. The investment is intended to help accelerate Starlight’s pipeline of rental housing in locations where housing supply remains constrained. Starlight’s strategy is focused on professionally managed rental communities across major regional cities including Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds, together with locations within the London commuter belt. Developments are being targeted towards areas with strong rental demand and access to employment, education and transport infrastructure. The company’s wider UK platform now comprises 12 BTR communities at various stages from development and construction through to leasing and operation. Starlight says its expanding pipeline is expected to place the business among the UK’s four largest BTR operators by scale as further developments become operational. Jonnie Milich, Head of UK Residential at Starlight Investments, said the closing would allow the business to concentrate on execution and the next phase of growth, supported by an established development pipeline and expanding UK team. The investment comes as institutional capital continues to play an increasingly important role in bringing forward large-scale rental housing. For the construction and residential development markets, Starlight’s £680 million capital raise provides substantial funding capacity for thousands of new homes, creating a significant future pipeline for architects, contractors, consultants and specialist supply chain businesses as schemes progress. Starlight has operated in the UK since 2020 and, as of May 2026, managed around 4,000 UK homes with approximately £1.1 billion of assets under management. Building, Design & Construction Magazine | The Choice of Industry Professionals